Kingyo Sukui
by RedScarfedSoldier
Summary: A festival is being held in Wall Sina, and the result is a clumsy Levi, his new pet goldfish and a very awkward Mikasa.


A/N: Because instead of writing continuations of things people are actually interested in, my brain gives me inspiration for crack fics. Canon universe-yet-also-AU kind of setting, because I doubt there's Japanese festivals in canon, but other than that everything else is the same. The result of falling in love with a piece of art in the middle of the night after eating many lemon tarts.

* * *

It was a warm Summer night and the members of Squad Levi were all gathered together, enjoying dinner in company as they did nearly every night. Chatter echoed around the table, laughter here, a short lived fight and some gossip there. It could be rather loud sometimes, but not one person would dare to disagree there wasn't something comforting about it all, happy, almost. It gave them a sense of peace at the end of a long, hard day.

But that sense of peace was about to come to an end for tonight. Sasha had just begun talking about a new recipe she had come across yesterday while cleaning when the door slammed open, shocking nearly everyone. Everyone except for Levi, who knew exactly who was known for obnoxiously bursting into rooms and interrupting things they weren't invited to. ''What is it now, Hanji?'' He sighed, lifting his tea cup to his lips.

The woman laughed excitedly before grabbing a chair and joining them at the table, thrilled to inform them of her most recent discovery, earning her noises of disapproval from the majority of the squad, not wanting to listen to more results from a new titan experiment over their dinner. Hanji titled her head to the side, confusion evident on her features at their reaction. ''Hm? Why the long faces? Maybe what I have to say will cheer you all up. You'll never guess! They're holding a festival in Wall Sina tomorrow night!''

Sasha was the first to perk up at this, with Connie following after catching onto her train of thought. Festivals meant people, people meant shops, shops meant…_Food. _Soon most of the table erupted into mindless chatter over the announcement.

''Calm down, all of you.'' Ordered a very aggravated Levi. ''And what's that supposed to mean?'' He had worked with her long enough to know she never brought up things like this without an ulterior motive.

''What's that supposed to mean? It's supposed to mean we should all attend, silly! We could all use a little break!'' She laughed, nods of agreement followed from most of the squad.

''Not interested.'' Collective sounds of disappointment could be heard from around the table, until it became unbearably irritating. ''Alright, I get it. You brats can go if you want to, but count me out.'' Levi negotiated, going straight back to finishing up his meal.

''Count me out, too.'' A soft voice cut through their celebrations, bringing them to a lull. Mikasa never spoke much at dinner, so when she did, most of the attention immediately shifted to her.

Eren nearly jumped out of his seat at this. ''Whaat!? But Mikasa— You have to go! Who knows when we'll get another chance like this!'' She looked down at her plate in thought. He _did_ have a point. They hardly ever got the chance to do anything fun. But still, she preferred spending time with the people close to her over being at gatherings with many.

It was now Armin's turn to jump in and try to convince her. ''I agree with Eren and Squad Leader Hanji, Mikasa. It's a good chance to have some fun, and you deserve a break.'' She looked at him and sighed, accepting defeat upon knowing she wouldn't be able to turn down both her childhood friends when they asked her to join them, she never could. ''Alright…I guess.'' She smiled slightly, earning approval from her fellow squad members as well as Hanji.

''Now we just need to convince Captain Levi!'' Eren shouted, earning him a deathly glare. ''Not happening.'' He mumbled as he stood up and began to walk out of the room, a persistent Hanji following close behind.

''Come on, Levi. Why not?'' She nagged, frowning as she trailed behind him. When that got her nowhere, she decided to use her last available option. ''You know… Mikasa said she's going…''

He turned around, frantically looking for anyone who might have heard, and letting out a sigh of relief when he saw no one. ''Would you _shut up_, shitty glasses?'' He sent a piercing gaze through the woman who now had a mischievous grin plastered on her face. ''I don't care.'' Were the last words he shot over his shoulder before slamming the door in the giggling woman's face.

In the privacy of his own room, however, he held his head in his hands and groaned, knowing he would indeed be attending the festival tomorrow.

* * *

The night was pleasantly cool for the middle of Summer, and the streets were alive with people of all ages shouting, chatting, dancing, singing, eating and playing games. It was a turning out to be a fun night, and she was glad she had agreed to attend. Eren and Armin both looked adorable in their outfits, and it was worth coming just to see their faces light up as they tried new games and foods.

''Mikasa, we're going to go get some more yakitori! Come on!'' Her friends began to pull her along, but she stopped them. She was already full from their previous food adventures, and she didn't have a large appetite to begin with. ''I think I'll stay here and look around a bit…''

''Okay!'' Eren exclaimed, already beginning to drag Armin along. ''Have fun, Mikas- Eren, stop!'' She smiled as she watched her two friends stumble down the path giggling. She began to walk around and inspect the stalls, until she saw a familiar short figure standing in line for…Goldfish scooping? _No, he's probably just watching. _She decided to wait for a minute to see if he would move, but he didn't.

Curiously, she walked up beside him. ''You like fish?'' She questioned, she never took him for the type to like any kind of pet, but she figured if he did it wouldn't be too strange. They didn't make much mess, or require much care, really.

He recognized her voice immediately, and just shrugged, not taking his eyes off the man in front of him who was taking an annoyingly long time for someone just trying to catch a simple goldfish.

''He sure is taking a while…'' She commented, as if she had just read his previous thoughts.

''Maybe he's trying to catch a long carp and it just won't stay still.''

She let out a small laugh, causing him to look at her. _Bad move. _His jaw dropped at the sight of her, admitting she was beautiful was something he had always done, but tonight was more than that. She was absolutely stunning, her yukata perfectly complimenting the scarf she insisted on wearing even tonight, and her raven hair contrasted with it perfectly.

She seemed to take note of his reaction, cheeks quickly turning flush with colour and her hand immediately moving to shield her face with her scarf. As if the timing couldn't have been better, the man ahead of him had finally finished. _And failed to catch a single goldfish._

''U-Uh, looks like he's finished. I'll leave you to it.'' She stuttered, running off to find Eren and Armin.

Levi walked up to the stall and was looked over by the stall keeper. ''Ah, I have a special deal for children! I'll let you play two times for the price of one. How's that sound?''

He was about to lash out at the man when a particular rare red goldfish caught his eye, and he grew determined to get it. Maybe being mistaken for a kid just this once wouldn't be all that bad. He nodded at the man and took the poi and bowl, setting his eyes on the fish.

He soon realized it was a bit harder than he thought it would be, and being Humanity's Strongest didn't exactly transition over into simple festival games. It took until his second attempt, but he finally caught the small red fish. He took the bag and began to walk away, but decided he would spite the man first.

''You know… You should probably only offer that to people who are actually kids.'' He called out from over his shoulder. He could hear a mess of grumbles from behind him as he walked away with a smirk and his new fish.

* * *

It had been a long day, but not an entirely unpleasant one. He grabbed a bowl from the kitchen to house his new fish and made his way back to his room, fish in one hand, bowl in the other.  
He headed towards his desk to set the bowl down, but his mind suddenly flashed to the earlier image he had seen of Mikasa in her yukata, and suddenly, he tripped over his own and crashed to the floor, splitting open the goldfish bag and sending the bowl flying across the room.

Mikasa had been walking down the hall towards her own room when she heard a bang from behind the door, acting immediately she swung it open to investigate, but what she didn't expect to see was her Captain lying in a puddle of water, a fish in front of him and his red yukata slipping off his shoulders.

They both froze in place, never breaking eye contact. It had to have been about a minute before she looked down towards the fish that was on the ground near his mouth. She swallowed, and said the stupidest thing she had probably ever said.

''That fish… Is lucky.'' And as quick as she had arrived, she's gone, leaving him no opportunity to respond, but he doesn't miss the faint blush on her cheeks as she exits.

After a moment of processing what had just happened, he blushes profusely, burying his face in his hands. _What the hell._


End file.
